360 research outputs found
‘Born to Shop’: Malls, Dream-Worlds and Capitalism
No full textIt has been twenty years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, and a new generation, untouched by the previous communist regimes, has come to adulthood throughout the post-communist world. The Iulius Group’s logo – ‘Born to shop!’ – suggests that these are born shoppers: the capitalist babies of Central and Eastern Europe who are sustaining the largest growth in retail and shopping malls in Europe. With no living memory of shortages, queuing, or government restrictions, they know only the limit of their own – or their parents’ – pocket/credit. Their world could not be more different from the one that their parents and grandparents experienced: both the abundance of goods and services, as well as the opulent settings under which they are now sold, offer striking visual contrasts to the not-so-distant past. In addition, the very experience of consumption is directly connected to the way in which the current social fabric – and new social divisions within it – is interwoven with the physical and architectural changes taking place in the urban setting
Global ethnic and geographic differences in the clinical presentations of anti-neutrophil cytoplasm antibody–associated vasculitis
No full text© The Author 2017. Objectives. There are few data on clinical profiles of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) in different ethnic populations. The aim of this study was to examine the differences in the ANCA type and clinical features of AAV between populations using the Diagnostic and Classification Criteria in Vasculitis Study (DCVAS) dataset. Methods. The DCVAS is an international, multicentre, observational study recruiting in 133 sites. Eight ethnic categories were analysed: Northern European, Caucasian American, Southern European, Middle Eastern/Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Indian subcontinent and other. ANCA type was categorized as myeloperoxidase (MPO), PR3 and ANCA negative. Organ system involvement was recorded using a standard dataset. Differences were analysed by chi-squared tests using a Bonferroni correction and logistic regression (adjusting for age and sex). Northern European was the reference population. Results. Data from 1217 patients with AAV were available and the 967 (79.5%) patients recruited by rheumatology departments were analysed to reduce confounding by recruitment specialty. There were differences in ANCA type between ethnic categories (P < 0.001): MPO-ANCA was more common than PR3-ANCA in Japanese, Chinese and Southern Europeans; PR3-ANCA was more common in the other groups. Compared with Northern Europeans, Japanese had a nearly 60-fold increased chance of having MPO-ANCA (vs PR3-ANCA) [odds ratio (OR) 59.2 (95% CI 8.0, 440.7), P < 0.001] and Chinese had a nearly 7-times increased chance [OR 6.8 (95% CI 2.6, 17.8), P < 0.001]. Ophthalmologic and otorhinolaryngologic involvement were less common in Japanese and Chinese populations than Northern Europeans; otherwise, there were few differences in organ involvement between ethnic groups. Conclusion. This study confirms the previously observed differential occurrence of MPO-AAV and PR3- AAV between different ethnic groups
The Disclosure of Evidence Under the ‘Antitrust Damages’ Directive 2014/104/EU
No full textThe aim of this contribution is to reflect on the principles underpinning the disclosure of evidence under Directive 2014/104/EU, namely the principles of proportionality, effectiveness, equivalence and consistency. It also aims to review the legislative techniques that the Directive has used in order to codify the previous case law of the European Union (EU) courts and to discuss several recent rulings, including Carglass, Pilkington, Evonik Degussa and others. Finally, the author draws conclusions on the adequacy of the achieved codification of the previous case law on the disclosure of evidence and access to such evidence, as well as on its potential implications for the Member States. This contribution is based on a presentation delivered at the 4th Petar Šarčević international conference on ‘EU Competition and State Aid Rules: Interaction between Public and Private Enforcement’ in Rovinj, Croatia. The author would like to thank the organisers of the wonderful conference, the editors and commentators, especially Vlatka Butorac Malnar, Judges Vesna Tomljenović, Marc Jaeger, Viktor Kreuschitz and Miro Prek, and also Marc Barennes and Nuria Bermejo Gutierrez
Enhanced Formation and Disordered Regulation of NETs in Myeloperoxidase-ANCA-Associated Microscopic Polyangiitis.
No full textMicroscopic polyangiitis (MPA) is an ANCA-associated vasculitis that affects small vessels, especially renal glomeruli. We recently demonstrated that the abnormal formation and impaired degradation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) may be crucially involved in the generation of myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA and subsequent development of MPA. This study assessed the formation and regulation of NETs in patients with MPO-ANCA-associated MPA. Peripheral blood samples were obtained from 38 patients with MPO-ANCA-associated MPA, 23 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and 8 healthy controls. IgG eluted from MPO-ANCA-associated MPA sera demonstrated the highest ability to induce NETs, and this ability correlated with disease activity and paralleled ANCA affinity for MPO. Moreover, addition of recombinant human MPO to these IgG samples reduced NET induction. Additionally, MPO-ANCA-associated MPA sera exhibited lower rates of NET degradation that recovered partially upon depletion of IgG. The activity of DNase I, an important regulator of NETs, was also lower in MPO-ANCA-associated MPA and SLE sera. IgG depletion from MPO-ANCA-associated MPA sera partially restored the rate of NET degradation, and addition of DNase I synergistically enhanced this restoration. Addition of anti-MPO antibodies did not inhibit DNase I activity, and some MPO-ANCA-associated MPA sera contained anti-NET antibodies at levels not correlated with MPO-ANCA titers, suggesting the involvement of unidentified autoantibodies as well. The collective evidence suggests a vicious cycle involving MPO-ANCA and the regulation of NETs could be critically involved in the pathogenesis of MPO-ANCA-associated MPA
Abuse of Global Platform Dominance or Competition on the Merits?
No full textContrary to mainstream opinion, suggesting that dominant online platforms compete on their own merits and that their abuse of the large-scale accumulation of data should fall under data or privacy laws, this article argues that competition law should investigate whether global platform competition has been established on merit alone and how digital dominance has been strengthened through the downfall of emerging competition (the exclusionary harm) and the excessive combination of individuals\u27 data (exploitative harm). To frame the theory of competitive harm in a global context, this article compares several of the most recent cases involving digital giants such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon in both pro-active jurisdictions, as well as in less interventionist jurisdictions. In doing so, the author challenges the existing categorization of abuse of a dominant position, especially self-preferencing and the excessive disclosure of data. This article advances the constitutional dimension of competition law by recognizing the principle of nondiscrimination and equal treatment in Google Shopping and the principle of autonomous self-determination in Facebook as embedded in quasi-constitutional EU freedoms of free and fair competition for businesses and free choice for consumers
Pathogenesis and therapeutic interventions for ANCA-associated vasculitis.
No full textAnti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) affects systemic small vessels and is accompanied by the presence of ANCAs in the serum. This disease entity includes microscopic polyangiitis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis and drug-induced AAV. Similar to other autoimmune diseases, AAV develops in patients with a predisposing genetic background who have been exposed to causative environmental factors. The mechanism by which ANCAs cause vasculitis involves ANCA-mediated excessive activation of neutrophils that subsequently release inflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen species and lytic enzymes. In addition, this excessive activation of neutrophils by ANCAs induces formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Although NETs are essential elements in innate immunity, excessive NET formation is harmful to small vessels. Moreover, NETs are involved not only in ANCA-mediated vascular injury but also in the production of ANCAs themselves. Therefore, a vicious cycle of NET formation and ANCA production is considered to be involved in the pathogenesis of AAV. In addition to this role of NETs in AAV, some other important discoveries have been made in the past few years. Incorporating these new insights into our understanding of the pathogenesis of AAV is needed to fully understand and ultimately overcome this disease
ANCA-negative pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis
No full textCrescentic glomerulonephritis is a severe form of glomerular injury that is characterized by disruption of the glomerular basement membrane, cellular proliferation within Bowman space, and (often) fibrinoid necrosis. Pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis, so called because it involves little or no glomerular immunoglobulin deposition, is one of the most common causes of rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis. in the majority of patients, pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis is a manifestation of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis. However, some patients with pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis lack ANCAs. This review compares the prevalence, clinical manifestations, histopathology, and outcomes of ANCA-negative pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis with those of ANCA-positive disease. we also discuss the possible pathogenesis of ANCA-negative pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis, paying particular attention to the mechanisms and role of neutrophil activation
Procedural Rights in EU Administrative Competition Proceedings: Ex Ante Mergers
No full textThe present contribution has two inter-related purposes: first, to analyse the context and legal framework of procedural rights in EU competition law, in particular, the administrative notification of mergers, and second, to critically review any perceived flaws in the substantive, institutional design or exercise of these procedural rights in practice, thereby offering proposals for institutional reform
“SEGMENTATION OF ANTI NEUTROPHIL CYTOPLASMIC ANTIBODIES (ANCA) IMAGES BASED ON WATERSHED AND WAVELET”
No full textAutoimmune disease is a type of disease where immune system unable to tell between the good side and bad side which lead to the misguided attack on the healthy cells and tissues. Autoimmune disease can be classified to more than 80 types depending on the affected area. The test also varies according to the suspected type of disease. Some examples of the test are Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) test, Indirect Immunofluorescence (IIF) test of Antinuclear Antibody (ANA) by using HeP-2 Cells and IIF test for Anti Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibodies (ANCA). However in this project, author only focus on the ANCA images with two major staining patterns which are P-ANCA and C-ANCA. Currently the positivity of the images depends solely on the experience of the physician which led to variety of result and lack of reliability. Besides the time to get the result is time consuming. Thus an automatic classification system has been developed to overcome the manual process. The vital process inside the automatic system is the segmentation part. Many researchers suggest different techniques of segmentation to segment the ANCA images before being further processed. In this research, author focus on Watershed technique to segment the ANCA images by implementing the algorithm in Matlab. Author use Wavelet transform to suppress noise to avoid from over segmentation of the ANCA images. Using Rand Index method, the result of segmentations is verified. Combination of Watershed and Wavelet transform gives a very promising result. Recommendation for future work is to explore on automatic determination of noise variance inside images
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